A History of Western Philosophy

by Bertrand Russell

Since its first publication in 1945 Lord Russell's A History of Western Philosophy has been universally acclaimed as the outstanding one-volume work on the subject?unparalleled in its comprehensiveness, its clarity, its erudition, its grace and wit. In seventy-six chapters he traces philosophy from the rise of Greek civilization to the emergence of logical analysis in the Since its first publication in 1945 Lord Russell's A History of Western Philosophy has been universally acclaimed as the...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day

ISBN

Edition Language

:

English

Format Type

:

Paperback

Number of Pages

:

906 pages pages

A History of Western Philosophy Reviews

AnimeshMay 24, 2007

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

Jared ColleyMay 15, 2007

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

TrevorJul 02, 2009

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

Ahmad SharabianiApr 08, 2012

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

Adam Dec 23, 2007

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

PaulJan 14, 2008

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

Karl-OOct 08, 2011

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

I found this a very well written book on the history of philosophy. It presented most of the major western philosophers in chronological order starting from the ancient greek. It focused most on political theory and the influence of politics and society on the philosophers view as well...

This is THE absolute reference book for Western Philosophy. Starting from the Pro-Socratic times and ending at the dawn of the 20th century, Russel goes through all the major philosophical movements of the West. The thought of most major philosophers is being beautifully laid down and ...

There is no doubt that Russell ignores some important elements in the history of western thought in his History of Western Philosophy. I am not as much annoyed as some who consider this book worthless for that matter. I may be biased toward him and the importance he gives to the scient...

Mr.Oct 07, 2008

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

Riku SayujMar 05, 2015

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

MannyNov 23, 2010

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

BramDec 15, 2009

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Cassandra Kay SilvaApr 12, 2015

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

Mark LawrenceJan 05, 2012

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

Ian "Marvin" GrayeFeb 23, 2011

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

Dylan PopowiczAug 06, 2011

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Ahmad Abdul RahimJun 12, 2015

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Roy LotzJul 13, 2013

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Roberto Rigolin F LopesJul 21, 2018

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

StianJul 08, 2013

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Aleksandar JanjicMar 12, 2017

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

Roderick VincentNov 05, 2015

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

I found this a very well written book on the history of philosophy. It presented most of the major western philosophers in chronological order starting from the ancient greek. It focused most on political theory and the influence of politics and society on the philosophers view as well...

This is THE absolute reference book for Western Philosophy. Starting from the Pro-Socratic times and ending at the dawn of the 20th century, Russel goes through all the major philosophical movements of the West. The thought of most major philosophers is being beautifully laid down and ...

There is no doubt that Russell ignores some important elements in the history of western thought in his History of Western Philosophy. I am not as much annoyed as some who consider this book worthless for that matter. I may be biased toward him and the importance he gives to the scient...

This book is really a fantasitic work! I really like the cover. A broad way to the western philosophy! I bought this book last week, and fell in love with it suddenly. I have read it many times already. The book is divided by three parts, ancient philosophy, catholic philosophy, and mo...

A great introduction to all of the heavy weight philosophers. The last chapter summed up well why Russell had the habit of crushing each of the philosophers in turn throughout the book. Certainly some spankings were in order. Russell had a great mind, and this book had an interesting h...

FoadSep 28, 2014

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

I found this a very well written book on the history of philosophy. It presented most of the major western philosophers in chronological order starting from the ancient greek. It focused most on political theory and the influence of politics and society on the philosophers view as well...

This is THE absolute reference book for Western Philosophy. Starting from the Pro-Socratic times and ending at the dawn of the 20th century, Russel goes through all the major philosophical movements of the West. The thought of most major philosophers is being beautifully laid down and ...

There is no doubt that Russell ignores some important elements in the history of western thought in his History of Western Philosophy. I am not as much annoyed as some who consider this book worthless for that matter. I may be biased toward him and the importance he gives to the scient...

This book is really a fantasitic work! I really like the cover. A broad way to the western philosophy! I bought this book last week, and fell in love with it suddenly. I have read it many times already. The book is divided by three parts, ancient philosophy, catholic philosophy, and mo...

Nahed.ENov 26, 2014

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

I found this a very well written book on the history of philosophy. It presented most of the major western philosophers in chronological order starting from the ancient greek. It focused most on political theory and the influence of politics and society on the philosophers view as well...

Michael FinocchiaroOct 22, 2016

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

Spyros PassasFeb 12, 2017

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

Overview
Bertrand Russell's History consists of 76 Chapters, almost all under 20 pages.
Each Chapter contains a summary of one major philosopher's key arguments interlaced with criticism that reflects Russell's own priorities and perspectives.
In a sense, it is one philosophe...

At first it seems impressive that a single individual could accumulate such a vast understanding of Werstern Philosophy from Thales to Dewey. At first it seems that the work is well researched, objective, and only humorously judgemental at times. . . And for the first five-hundred page...

Not only is this an excellent primer on all the major Western philosophers and an impressive synthesis of the evolution of philosophic thought over a 2500-year span, it's also one of the wittier books I've ever read. I'd be quite interested to hear Bertrand Russell's thoughts on the pa...

Bertrand Russel rocks the entire history of Western Philosophy like a boss! Long but, oh so worth it! ...

This 895-pager (including the index), could alternatively have been titled, just as fittingly, and perhaps even more accurately, "Bertrand Russell's Opinions of Western Philosophers". And, though you now have my opinion as well, don't let that deter you from approaching this well-writt...

A very subjective history of philosophy. Russell makes it very clear what he thinks of every philosopher mentioned and it's not very hard to see who he likes and who he dislikes.
The first part of the book on Ancient Philosophy I thought was excellent and very fascinating. The vari...

Russell's History of Philosophy is a good little introduction to a massive field. His biases will be a problem for those who are aligned with the ones he critiques. This is because he frequently lets his biases cloud his thinking. For example, he writes,
"So little is known of him [...

We are in 1946, Russell is building the chain of ideas that have been pushing civilization to the current state. His erudition is profound but he is biased while selecting thinkers and ideas. And that's what makes this book so good. As a historian, he is using at least three hats as: m...

This is of course an analytic philosopher's history of western philosophy, which means that Russell presupposes that there is a single rational goal which all philosophers are seeking to reach through collective progress. Unfortunately, philosophy is not mathematics, nor is it science....

There are three points I want to make:
1.The author has a very fantastic style of writing. It uses the classic way of writing non-fiction. When you read it, you won't feel you are reading a textbook, because you can know what the author is thinking and that he is sharing his thoughts ...

Ray Monk
"A History of Western Philosophy remains unchallenged as the perfect introduction to its subject. Russell...writes with the kind of verve, freshness and personal engagement that lesser spirits would never have permitted themselves. This boldness, together with the astonishing...

I much preferred "The Dream of Reason" as a philosophical overview to this one. To be honest they are both subjective and fairly biased views of historical philosophy but I just prefer Gotliebs bias more! I don't know what that says about me, perhaps I should be looking for something m...

This book is invaluable to me. I first read it as a high schooler & young college student, and I have never stopped reading it since. This has served as a resource/reference for countless various reasons. Mr. Russell offers a pretty comprehensive account of Western, intellectual hi...

This is the mother of all books!
This tome was apparently dictated by Bertrand Russell to his secretary during his lecture trips in America as he traveled by train across the country in the 1920s.
It is witty, provocative, profound, and informative all at the same time.
If you...

I found this a very well written book on the history of philosophy. It presented most of the major western philosophers in chronological order starting from the ancient greek. It focused most on political theory and the influence of politics and society on the philosophers view as well...

This is THE absolute reference book for Western Philosophy. Starting from the Pro-Socratic times and ending at the dawn of the 20th century, Russel goes through all the major philosophical movements of the West. The thought of most major philosophers is being beautifully laid down and ...

Hussam ElkhatibMay 13, 2017

There's a throwaway remark in this book which has haunted me ever since I read it some time in the mid-70s. Russell is talking about Socrates, and he wonders if Socrates actually existed. Maybe Plato made him up.
"I don't think many people would have been able to make up Socrates," ...

A Critical (& Patronizing) Survey of Western Philosophy
Russell is consistently opinionated throughout his presentation and it might confuse some of the readers that he is so casual in writing off some of the major philosophers and their key ideas. This is because the book is ...

I stole this off my father's shelves many years ago. The indications on the inside cover was that he read it in Finland in 1959 - I think he once missed a train there and the next one wasn't for a week.
It's true that this is in many respects a heavy, dry, and testing read. On the o...

This is a remarkable book. Over the years I have found various reasons to look into it now and again, but have never read the whole thing. Mostly I?ve read the bits about particular philosophers: Heraclitus, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Marx for example. I hadn?t realised that ?di...

A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Bertrand Russell
A History of Western Philosophy is a 1945 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell. A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic ...

I enjoyed this a bit too much. The History of Western Philosophy is exactly my kind of book, and so this review will be biased.
This, however, illustrates my first point. One?s opinion of this work will largely depend on one?s opinion of Russell. This is because he frequently in...

About the author

Bertrand Russell

Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS, was a Welsh philosopher, historian, logician, mathematician, advocate for social reform, pacifist, and prominent rationalist. Although he was usually regarded as English, as he spent the majority of his life in England, he was born in Wales, where he also died.

He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1950 "in recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and freedom of thought."